Sweet cherry &#39;IFG Cher-one&#39;

ABSTRACT

This invention is a new and distinct sweet cherry variety denominated ‘IFG Cher-one’. The new sweet cherry is characterized by producing very large dark red kidney shaped fruits having broad shoulders and flat to round base. Fruits ripen early about three days ahead of the Brooks variety.

LATIN NAME OF THE GENUS AND SPECIES CLAIMED

Prunus avium

VARIETY DENOMINATION

‘IFG Cher-one’

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The new and distinct sweet cherry described and claimed hereinoriginated from open pollinated seeds collected in May 2001, from apollenizer tree designated as 10-1 in a commercial orchard of the Brooksvariety (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,676).growing near Delano, Kern County,Calif. The seeds were stratified, germinated and the resulting seedlingswere planted in the field at the International Fruit Genetics researchfacility located near Delano, Kern County, Calif. in April 2002. Thepresent variety of sweet cherry was selected as a single plant in May2005 and was first asexually propagated in January 2006 by grafting ontoa tree of Belle de Planchoury, itself being grafted on Prunus mahalabrootstock. It was subsequently propagated directly onto Prunus mahalabrootstock by chip budding in April 2007. These propagules were found toreproduce true-to-type by asexual propagation. All propagation was doneat the International Fruit Genetics research facility located nearDelano, Kern County Calif.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

Sweet cherries have traditionally been grown in climates with long coldwinters and cool to moderately warm summers. Such climates provideenough cold winter temperatures to allow normal growth to resume in thespring and summer temperatures that are low enough not to induceproduction of unmarketable double or spurred fruit, but it limits theseasonality that cherries are available. The International FruitGenetics sweet cherry breeding program focuses on developing types ofcherries that will grow in regions with low winter chilling and highsummer temperatures so that the fruit will ripen before fruit intraditional growing regions.

The new sweet cherry ‘IFG Cher-one’ is characterized by producing verylarge dark red kidney shaped fruits having broad shoulders and flat toround base. Fruits ripen early about three days ahead of the Brooksvariety. The ‘IFG Cher-one’ has somewhat soft acidic flesh. Firmness canbe improved by application of gibberellic acid. The tree has a mediumhigh chilling requirement similar to or slightly lower than the Brooksvariety. It produces a similar number of doubled and spurred fruits asthe Brooks variety in high summer temperature regions such as theSouthern San Joaquin Valley of California. Fruits of ‘IFG Cher-one’ havemedium long, thick stems that remain attached and stay green duringstorage and shipping.

In comparison to the Brooks variety, which is a major variety grown inwarm regions, the present variety ripens about three days earlier, islarger and has more desirable darker red skin and flesh. In comparisonto its female parent, the present variety has a lower chillingrequirement and exhibits less undesirable symptoms of lack of chillincluding more consistently setting crops, exhibiting less undesirablevariable ripening and producing fewer unmarketable doubled or spurredfruits.

In comparison to the Tulare variety (U.S. Plant Pat. No. 6,407), the‘IFG Cher-one’ produces larger fruit that ripen approximately six toeight days before the Tulare variety. The fruit shape of ‘IFG Cher-one’has a more desirable round to kidney shape with broad shoulders and flatstylar end compared to the more pointed, narrower shoulder shape of theTulare variety. The ‘IFG Cher-one’ has a higher chill requirement andproduces more doubled fruits than the Tulare variety.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURE

The accompanying photographic illustration in FIG. 1 illustrates in fullcolor ‘IFG Cher-one’. The photograph was taken outdoors with indirectlighting. The colors are as nearly true as is reasonably possible in acolor representation of this type.

DETAILED BOTANICAL DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

Throughout this specification, color names beginning with a small lettersignify that the name of that color, as used in common speech, is aptlydescriptive. Color names beginning with a capital letter designatevalues based upon R.H.S. Colour Chart, published by The RoyalHorticultural Society, London, England.

Throughout this specification subjective description values conform tothose set forth by the International Board for Plant Genetic Resources(IBPGR) ‘Cherry Descriptor List’ (Prunus spp.) (1985) which wasdeveloped with full support from the Commission of the EuropeanCommunities (CEC) Programme Committee for Plant Disease ResistanceBreeding and the Use of Genebanks.

The descriptive matter which follows pertains to an ‘IFG Cher-one’ plantgrowing on its own roots grown in the vicinity of Delano, Kern County,Calif. during 2013 and 2014, and is believed to apply to plants of thevariety grown under similar conditions of soil and climate elsewhere:

-   Tree:    -   -   General.—Age — 11 yrs. old Height — About 2.3 M Width —            About 3.2 M Vigor — Vigorous Density of foliage — Dense Form            — Spreading Productivity — Productive Root stock — Own root            Resistance to — Insects: Average typical of Prunus avium            species. Diseases: Average typical of Prunus avium species.            Chilling requirement — Medium, similar to ‘Brooks’ Graft            compatibility — Good; produces compatible graft unions with            Mazzard seedlings (non-patented) and Mahaleb seedlings            (non-patented).        -   Trunk.—Trunk diameter of 12 year old trees, 30 cm above the            soil line — About 19.9 cm Lenticel size — Large Lenticel            dimensions — Length: About 1.3 cm. Width: About 0.3 cm            Lenticel shape — Elliptical shape oriented horizontally            Lenticel color — Can be any of the following colors: 156A            and C Trunk surface texture — Rough Outer bark color — Can            be any of the following colors: 187B and 183B and 198C.-   Branches:    -   -   1 year old wood.—Vertical top growth length — Long; About            146.4 cm Horizontal growth length — Medium; About 47.7 cm            Diameter — Vertical growth: About 1.6 cm. Horizontal growth;            About 0.9 cm Internode length — Medium: About 3 cm Number of            lenticels — Few Lenticel size — Small Lenticel dimensions —            Length: About 1 mm. Width: About 2 mm Lenticel shape — Round            Bark color — Can be any of the following colors: 175A and            166B.        -   2 year old wood.—Length — About 51.0 cm Diameter — About 1.1            cm Internode length — About 3.2 cm Number of lenticels —            Medium dense Lenticel dimensions — Length: About 5 mm.            Width: About 1 mm Lenticel shape — Elliptical shape oriented            horizontally Bark color — Can be any of the following            colors: 177A and 165A and 164A.-   Buds:    -   -   Vegetative buds.—Shape — Elongated Vegetative bud dimensions            — Length: About 7 mm. Width: About 3 mm Vegetative bud burst            — Feb. 25, 2014.        -   Flower buds.—Flower bud dimensions — Length: About 10.6 mm.            Width: About 7.1 mm Shape — Oval Placement — At bud            positions mostly 1 to 6 on 1 year wood Average number of            flower buds on first year wood — About 3.4 Number of flower            buds per spur on second year wood — 2 to 7. Average: About            4.6 Color — Can be any of the following colors: 144A and B            Flower bud burst — Feb. 25, 2014.-   Leaves:    -   -   Mature leaves.—Leaf dimensions — Length; About 16.9 cm.            Width; About 8.3 cm Leaf shape — Elliptic: Symmetric on both            sides of central axis Shape of tip — Acute; broadly Shape of            base — Oblique Margin — Serrated; regular Surface texture —            Smooth Leaf profile — Involute.        -   Upper surface.—Upper surface pubescence — None Upper leaf            surface color — 147A.        -   Lower surface.—Lower surface pubescence — All over; medium            dense Lower leaf surface color — 147B.        -   Petiole.—Petiole dimensions — Length: About 3.0 cm. Width:            About 2.8 cm Upper surface of petiole color — 177A Lower            surface of petiole color — 166A Petiole groove — Wide            Petiole pubescence — Only on lower surface; sparse to medium            Venation — Arcuate Vein color — 145C.        -   Glands.—Number of glands — 1 to 2 Gland dimensions — Length;            About 3.3 mm. Width; About 2 1 mm Gland shape — Reniform            Gland location — On petiole Gland color — Can be any of the            following colors; N34 and 153A Leaf stipule — Not present.-   Flowers: Blooming period — Mid-season Blooming dates — First bloom:    3-5-13. Full bloom 3-15-13 Number of flowers per cluster — 2 to 4.    Average: About 2.5 Corolla diameter — About 3.3 cm Petal number — 5    Petal length — About 1.8 cm Petal width — About 1.6 cm Margin    waviness — Weak Division of upper margin — Notched Color of petal    upper surface — 155D Color of petal lower surface — 155D Peduncle —    Length: About 1.1 cm. Width: About 0.12 cm Peduncle Color — 144A    Number of sepals — 5 Sepal length — About 0.6 cm Sepal width — About    0.5 cm Sepal shape — Triangular Sepal color — Upper surface: 144C.    Lower surface 60C Filament — Length: About 0.6 to 1.5 cm. Width:    About 0.03 cm Filament color — 155D Anther color — 17C Pollen color    — Can be any of the following colors: 162A and 163A Pollen    production — Medium Flower compatibility group — S6S9-   Fruit:    -   -   General.—Ripening period — Early midseason about 3 days            before ‘Brooks’: Approximately: 5-3-13 Use — Fresh market            Shipping quality — Average % Titratable acidity — About            0.70% Refractometer test — Soluble solids; Brix — About 14.4            Firmtech II (g/mm) — About 311 Flavor — Average, slightly            acidic Juice color — Dark red/purple Juice amount —            Intermediate Eating quality — Average.        -   Stem.—Stem — Length: About 2.8 cm. Width: About 0.17 cm Stem            color — 144A Stem cavity — Wide Stem retention during            storage — Very good Stem storage quality — Good.        -   Berry.—Uniformity of size — Uniform Shape — kidney Fruit            weight — About 10.1 gm Apical diameter — About 26.7 mm            Diameter transversely across suture — About 21 7 mm Diameter            at right angle to suture plane — About 26.7 mm Suture — None            Percent of excessively deep or split sutures — About 0%            Doubles — About 16%, similar to ‘Brooks’.        -   Skin.—Thickness — Medium Texture — Medium Skin Color — Can            be any of the following colors; 59A and B and C Tendency to            tip crack — Not susceptible Tendency to stem cavity crack —            Not susceptible.        -   Flesh.—Texture — Intermediate Color — Can be any of the            following colors: 187A and B.        -   Stone.—Shape — Oblong Stone dimensions — Length: About            12 mm. Width: About 8 mm Type — Clingstone Surface texture —            Smooth Stone color when dry — 159B Tendency to split — None            Shape — Round to slightly ovate Base — Flat Apex — Rounded            Ventral edge — Narrow suture subtended by 2 somewhat            prominent ridges converging at base and apex Dorsal edge —            Smooth, narrow ridge from base to apex.

What is claimed:
 1. A new and distinct variety of sweet cherry as hereinillustrated and described.